Conquering Writer's Bock
by A New Username
Summary: After ceasing her summer trips to Japan, Fate begins writing about her experiences there, posting the story of her most recent trip as a fanfic for her favorite anime. The story gains wild popularity, and before long, she is one of the most popular authors in her archive. After her most recent chapter, she gets a review, one that is the catalyst in changing her life. (HayaFate)
1. Writer versus Reviewer

Conquering Writer's Block

Chapter One: Writer versus Reviewer

* * *

**Author's Note**

**EDIT: I changed the setting from Los Angeles, CA to San Diego, CA. Sorry, but I'm not revealing my reasons just yet.**

**Check it out, I made a Nanoha fic! It's pretty amazing that this only took a couple of days to complete, even though most of those couple of days were spent conceiving the idea.**

**So then, I should probably tell you a little bit about this story before you start. Nothing integral to the plot, and no real spoilers, just some things that may make or break your interest in this story.**

**First off, the beginning of this chapter is based on a conversation I had with a person whose story I reviewed. Not really important to you guys, I'm sure, but it's just a little tidbit that I figured you might find intriguing.**

**Second off, Fate is going to be a **_**serious**_** tomboy in this story, wearing boyish clothes, playing basketball with just about anyone she can (and almost always winning), and just having a boyish aura, despite her feminine appearance. Despite all that, however, she is a writer for this very site (I'm sort of breaking the fourth wall, aren't I?), and she writes about romance and the like. It's like she has two different sides.**

**And third, the one that will most likely be the decision point for most of you, is that the pairing is **_**not**_** NanoFate. The pairing should be pretty obvious by the end of this chapter, as well as the character settings, so I won't say anything more on the matter.**

**I think that's about it, actually, so I'll see you in the (shorter) bottom author's note!**

* * *

Furious clacking noises resounded through the small apartment, stopping every once in a while, only to be replaced with the sound of fingers angrily drumming on a desk. Burgundy eyes stared at a laptop screen in annoyance, watching as the pixels in its lower right corner were once again lit up with a white box, signifying yet another email notification. Sighing in frustration, the blonde owner of the laptop moved her index finger across the mouse pad to click on the little popup window before it went away, causing a mid-sized window to pop up in the middle of the screen. The subject header was interesting enough, considering the sender, but when she read through the entire short message in a mere half a second, she grimaced in annoyance.

_Subject: Review: Summer Romance_

_From: FanFiction_

_I Forgot My Password,_

_A new review has been posted to your story_

_Story: Summer Romance_

_Chapter 10: Corruption_

_From: __Naru-tan_

_Reply_

—

_Sweet story, update soon_

Burgundy eyes closed as a frustrated sigh escaped the blonde's slightly-parted lips, every fiber of her being wishing that she would just get a constructive review at least once a week. But no, it seemed like the only reviews she ever got were things like, "I like this, keep it up," or, "Awesome, please update soon," with the latter being particularly annoying when they happened right after she updated, which happened to be the case this time.

_Come on, I just updated, like, an hour ago,_ the girl thought, her eyes snapping open in slight anger as she looked at the screen, only to find another review popping up in the corner of the screen. The blonde always believed in giving reviews a chance, however, and so she clicked on the little popup, reading the review with what soon turned from barely-restrained anger to actual fascination.

_Subject: Review: Summer Romance_

_From: FanFiction_

_I Forgot My Password,_

_A new review has been posted to your story_

_Story: Summer Romance_

_Chapter 1: Lady Killer_

_From: __Reinforce Haya_

_Reply_

—

_Damn, I wasn't planning to be so drawn in by this... I was planning to read this chapter to decide if I cared enough to keep reading later, then go write on my own stories. Well, I guess life doesn't always go as planned, so I might as well just go with it._

_Anyway, let's get to the actual review, shall we? Also, if you plan on responding (Which is unlikely, considering the number of reviews you have for this story already), please wait until I've finished reading what you have out so far. I'm a fast reader, so it won't take too long, but I'll probably only make one other review after this, and that one will be for your newest chapter._

_First off, I'll discuss the grammar. I'm honestly quite surprised that, at first glance, I didn't see anything worth nitpicking over. If I ever reread this story, I probably will, but I guess I was just too hooked to notice anything wrong with it. This sucks, since I'm a beta, and I'm supposed to catch these things immediately. But hey, this only goes to show how good you are, since you drew a grammar Nazi in enough to get her to not see anything, if there was anything to be seen to begin with._

_Second, I'll discuss the idea…_

_This message has been truncated due to length. To view in full, please visit site._

The overall intelligence of the review surprised the blonde; never in a million years did she expect such a thought-out review to come so soon after an update, and on top of that, not be ass-kissing like almost all of her other reviews. She almost immediately clicked on the reply button, eager to see the rest of the review, and when the new tab loaded, she was pleasantly surprised to see that there was much more to it. She found where she left off, then continued reading from there.

_Second, I'll discuss the idea. While I normally don't read yuri stories that have something like this as the premise, something drew me in. Well, I can't really say much yet, as I still have yet to see anything truly mind-blowing, in a good or bad way. This kind of plot has been used, but not so much that it's cliché, which explains why it's so popular. The fans of your story saw something they may have at least heard of before, yet not enough so that it turned them away with thoughts like, "Been there, read that."_

_Lastly, I'll assess the execution. Just like with my previous paragraph, I feel I should say that I actually can't judge this very much without reading the next chapter, or all of the ones out so far, for that matter. But, from this chapter alone, I see a very good execution of a good, if slightly used, idea. I haven't come across something that I haven't seen elsewhere, but I'll be honest with you; most of the places where I've seen similar ideas were done much more poorly than what you have here. So, kudos for making it into my top ten list for execution of good ideas._

_Anyway, I'm sorry for making such a long-winded review. The next will go by the same structure, though I might be a bit more critical depending on if the story has improved, stayed the same, or maybe even gotten worse. And, if you want to respond, I urge you to wait until I've finished with what you have out._

_See you in my next review._

Burgundy eyes shined with excitement as the blonde smiled broadly, trying her best not to squeal out in joy at the revelation that some of her readers still actually put thought into reviewing. It was a very rare sight indeed to see a review as well-thought out at this, and the anticipation of the next review from this "Reinforce Haya" was making the poor girl go crazy.

But, unfortunately for the blonde, the publishing of a ten-thousand word chapter that she had just finished at one in the morning, combined with an hour of trying her damnedest to work on the next one and opening emails of all kinds from FanFiction, had left her quite worn out. A yawn escaped her lips, and she soon found her burgundy eyes getting harder and harder to keep open. She knew she couldn't fight the dreaded devil known as sleep much longer, and so, she shut her laptop and took it off of her lap, getting up from her comfortable reclining desk chair and slowly walking up to her bed through the darkness.

When the blonde reached her bed, she immediately collapsed onto the soft memory foam mattress, her ruby eyes slowly closed as she shifted until she had somehow gotten under the covers. She thought one last thing before she fell into unconsciousness, a happy smile on her face.

_I really hope this Reinforce Haya girl likes the rest of my story… I really want to see another review from her… hopefully, she'll have reviewed in the morning._

With that, the FanFiction writer known as Fate Testarossa fell into a deep sleep, one filled with blissful dreams of conversing with intelligent reviewers.

* * *

Sapphire eyes slowly fluttered open, only to immediately shut tightly as a ray of incredibly bright sunlight fell directly onto them, nearly blinding the poor owner of the eyes in the process. Propping herself up with her left arm, her right covering her eyes, the girl slowly sat up in her queen-sized bed, deciding to chance it and open her eyes once more. Greeting her was a room she barely recognized due to the lack of any personal items or furniture other than her bed. It was really no surprise, though; she had just moved to this house with her family the day before, and they hadn't unpacked much of anything just yet other than the necessities.

The girl grabbed her phone from its spot by her pillow, unplugging it from its charger and watching the phone light up with her reflection, a nifty little feature that she got in the phone's app store. Her chocolate-brown hair, which came down to her shoulders, looked to be in serious need of washing. She hadn't showered in days, what with the stress of moving from Tokyo, Japan to San Diego, California, and the dullness of her normally-lustrous brown hair showed it as clear as day.

And yet, despite her substandard appearance, the only thing she wanted to do was check for a response from the author whose work, _Summer Romance_, had taken a special spot in her heart. It hit so close to home, with the plot so far almost feeling like it had been a page torn directly from her life story, making her get more and more involved in it, despite the sad mood it carried throughout each chapter.

_It's almost like it's the events of last year's summer vacation in her point of view,_ the brunette thought, slowly arising from her bed as she unlocked her phone. _The only real difference is that the main and supporting characters are from my favorite anime instead of her and I…_

Shaking her head vigorously, the girl snapped herself out of her reverie before any depressing thoughts could come of it, opening her email app and checking it for messages from FanFiction. In her first review to _Summer Romance_, she remembered focusing a bit on the idea being slightly used, but in reality, that wasn't the case; actually, the real reason she said it was to mask the fact that it hit close to home for her, connecting with her on an emotional level to the point of scaring her slightly.

About two hours after reviewing the first chapter the night before, the brunette had spent at least thirty minutes crafting a review that did its best to convey her feelings on the final chapter, which were very conflicted. On the one hand, the writing itself was beautiful; the most recent chapter had bumped this story up to the number one spot of her favorite stories list, even among non-fanfics. On the other, the chapter ended on a very sad note, which, combined with the author's note at the bottom telling that there wouldn't be an update for quite a while due to writer's block, made the already-disheartened brunette even more so.

Without even scrolling down, the girl found what she was looking for as soon as the app loaded: at the very top of her email list sat a PM from her new favorite author, _I Forgot My Password_, which had apparently arrived no more than fifteen minutes prior to the brunette waking up. When she opened the email, she was delighted to see that the subject header wasn't an angry one, but rather, a happy one instead.

_Subject: PM: I Forgot My Password_

_From: FanFiction_

_You have received a message from:_

_I Forgot My Password_

_Reply_

—

_Wow, thank you! I don't usually see reviews that take the time to evaluate how I wrote something, so this was awesome of you to do and awesome for me to read. It's also pretty interesting how I got such high ending marks even though you're mad at the semi-conclusion, so I feel I should both thank you for still reviewing and apologize for making you wait._

_As for my writer's block, I feel kind of guilty for saying that at this point… it was actually a half-lie. Sure, there's the fact that I can't write any further at the moment, but writer's block isn't actually the reason for that._

_Anyway, thank you for sticking with it to what I'm sure we both hope isn't the end, and I'm glad I was able to read such an intelligent review. It's really cool to see someone who obviously knows their stuff give my story such high marks, and it's left me fired up— in the good way, of course!_

_As a parting note, I'm sorry if you spotted any typos in this message; I just woke up, so my mind is still a little fuzzy. Well, I guess that's it for now, so I'll see you when I see you!_

As soon as the brunette finished reading the email from her phone, she hurriedly got out of bed, walking over to where she had left her laptop plugged in the night before. Opening the laptop up, she quickly typed in her password to unlock the piece of machinery. She noted that she had stopped for the night on her PM Inbox on FanFiction, so she pressed the control shortcut for the tab to reload, finding that there was indeed a PM from her new favorite author resting at the top.

Clicking on the link, the brunette waited for the page to reload, then reread the message to make sure she had read it right in the email she received. When she found that she had indeed read the email correctly, she smiled widely, ecstatic that she may have started forging a bond with this amazing author known as _I Forgot My Password_. Then, as the girl reread the message once more, something struck her as very strange.

_If writer's block isn't the cause of her saying that there might not be any updates for a while, then what is the cause?_ The brunette known as Hayate Yagami thought, sapphire eyes sparkling with curiosity as she quickly began typing out a reply.

* * *

Seemingly only a few seconds after Fate exited the shower connected to her room, clothed in a black T-shirt, dark blue jean shorts, black, fingerless leather gloves, and a ruby necklace that brought out her eyes, she found her cell phone in the middle of vibrating, with an email notification lighting up the lock screen. The blonde walked over to her bed, grabbing the device and swiping across the screen where the email was without even looking at the subject header. She entered her phone's password to unlock it, the phone automatically navigating to the mail app, where it showed the email she had just seen.

_Subject: PM: Reinforce Haya_

_From: FanFiction_

_You have received a message from:_

_Reinforce Haya_

_Reply_

—

_No problem; I always try not to leave one-liner reviews, as I'm always getting them myself, and I know first hand that they get really tiring, really fast. I'm glad my reviews were enjoyable to read, and I must thank you for responding so graciously, even though my last one was a bit harsh._

_I'm sorry if I'm asking something too personal or something, but I am curious about one thing: if writer's block isn't what's holding you back from making more chapters, then what is? Again, I'm sorry if I'm overstepping my bounds asking this, and you don't have to tell me if I am._

_And as for your morning grammar, I'm pleased to announce that I didn't spot any mistakes, so you don't have to worry about that. You're a really good writer, and your grammar is flawless! I would offer to be your beta, but there's nothing to fix! It makes me wonder, though: do you already have a beta?_

Fate smiled gently at the message, or more specifically, the thoughtfulness and consideration put into it, walking over to her closed laptop, opening it and typing in her password to unlock it. After a few seconds, she had navigated to her PM Inbox, clicking on the one at the top, which, obviously, was the one from Reinforce Haya.

_Looks like I've made another online friend,_ the blonde thought happily, rereading the message before putting her hands – well, her two index fingers, to be precise – to the keyboard.

* * *

Almost immediately after exiting the shower and entering her room, clad in a white blouse, blue shorts and white running shoes, Hayate found her phone vibrating, an email notification lighting up the lock screen. Running over to her laptop, her sapphire eyes shone with anticipation as she checked her email inbox from there, finding another PM from _I Forgot My Password_.

Navigating back to her FanFiction PM Inbox tab on her other window, she refreshed the page, then right-clicked on the PM thread with her new favorite author, choosing to open the page in a new tab. She then clicked on said new tab, reading the PM for the first time on the site, rather than through her email.

_Looks like you know the pain of having those one-liner reviews well, just as I do! I have a comrade! And no problem; I see getting worked up over things like that as a waste of energy, and besides, you've proven to be a really nice person, so I don't mind!_

_Don't worry about it; you'd have no way of knowing if it was a personal matter or not, and there's never any harm in asking, so it's fine. It is a bit personal, but I don't have any real trouble discussing it, since there's only one person who I wouldn't want to hear it, and she doesn't live in San Diego like I do. So, you said you were curious as to why, and I figure there's no harm in telling you, so…_

_You see, the story thus far is kind of based loosely off of a personal experience of mine, and the end of the most recent chapter pretty much ends that segment of my life. If I continue with this story, I would have to experience new things to give me new inspiration, and if I were to do that, I would probably end up changing the pairing, since the main character that represents me hasn't seen the person that the other main character in my story represents in quite a while. At this point, however, I don't think I could do that, since I'm still not over her…_

_Whew… you know, that was actually really refreshing to get off of my back, since I really haven't told this to anyone other than my roommate. Sorry if it bummed you out or something, but thanks for reading all the same._

By the end of the message, Hayate was in tears, the story having truly moved her, though not because of how sad it was; rather, the true reason she was so moved was because she had been through the same experience herself. She didn't think it that anyone else would have gone through what she did, and the fact that someone else did was a huge shock to the poor brunette. But then, another thing that this author said made its way into her thoughts, one that made her sapphire eyes glimmer with happiness as she looked up and out the window of her room.

_She said that she lives in San Diego,_ Hayate thought, looking back to her laptop happily as she began to type out a reply. _Maybe I could meet up with her!_

* * *

"What'cha doing?" a cheery voice said, its owner walking into Fate's room, only to find the blonde tap-tap-tapping away at her laptop's keyboard, a wide grin on her face. "We were going to go play basketball in the court by our apartment, and you agreed to not write the entire day, remember?"

"Oh, but I'm not writing," Fate said, turning to her auburn-haired roommate with a gleam in her ruby eyes that nearly matched that of rubies themselves. "You see, Nanoha, I met a very thoughtful reviewer last night who reviewed the first and tenth chapters of _Summer Romance_, and we've been talking ever since."

"Well, you're a little too excited for it to just be about that," Nanoha commented, a smug look on her face as she leaned on her roommate's desk to get a better look at the blonde's laptop screen. "So, what's got you so happy, all of the sudden? You're usually all doom and gloom ever since last summer, so what is it that got you out of your funk?"

"Well," Fate started, her ruby eyes still showing an unusual amount of happiness for someone who had been in an emotional funk for almost a year. "I know you'll think I'm an idiom for agreeing to this, but she said that she lived in San Diego as well, and that she wants to meet me!"

* * *

**Author's Note**

**So, what do you guys think of this chapter? I hope that, at the very least, this will give readers insight into the minds of FanFiction authors, who are always looking to see reviews that are thoughtful, not just one-liners.**

**Anyway, I'm very curious as to what those of you who read my other Nanoha fic, The Disappearance of Testarossa Fate, think of this new fic. If you read that and then read this, I'd love some feedback!**

**Well, I'll let you go for now, since I'm sure that everyone here other than me has a life to get back to. I'll just leave you with a disclaimer before you go.**

**I don't own the Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha series or anything I use from it!**

**See you next chapter! Ciao!**


	2. Mis-Meet Part I

Conquering Writer's Block

Chapter Two: Mis-Meet Part I

* * *

**Author's Note**

**For those of you who read this right when it came out, I have to say that I edited the location of the fic to fit a new idea that came to my mind. It was early on enough that it didn't interfere with anything in the plot, and I hadn't described the setting at all, so I'd say it wasn't too late to change it. And so, the new location for the events of this story is San Diego, California. Sorry in advance to those of you who get confused because you didn't read this note.**

**Other than that, I really don't know what to say here.**

**Have a good read!**

* * *

_"Well, you're a little too excited for it to just be about that," Nanoha commented, a smug look on her face as she leaned on her roommate's desk to get a better look at the blonde's laptop screen. "So, what's got you so happy, all of the sudden? You're usually all doom and gloom ever since last summer, so what is it that got you out of your funk?"_

_"Well," Fate started, her ruby eyes still showing an unusual amount of happiness for someone who had been in an emotional funk for almost a year. "I know you'll think I'm an idiot for agreeing to this, but she said that she lived in San Diego, too, and that she wants to meet me!"_

* * *

Only fifteen minutes after typing out her request, Hayate received an email from FanFiction, and without so much as looking at it, she went over to her laptop once more, navigating to her PM Inbox and opening the conversation in a new tab. What she found surprised and elated her; she had been expecting for her to decline after she realized how her request could be interpreted, so she didn't expect this response.

_Sure, that sounds really cool! I don't know where in San Diego you live, but if you know where this address is, then meet me there in about an hour and a half! If not, then PM me again and I'll tell you how to get there._

_2154 Garston Street  
San Diego, CA 92111_

Hayate quickly copied the address, then opened a new tab and pasted it in. Hitting enter, the brunette watched as an image of an apartment complex called, "Crandall Apartments" popped up, her cobalt eyes almost sparkling with anticipation. She briefly wondered if her soon-to-be friend lived there, then remembered that she should be getting directions, not pondering things that she really shouldn't.

After going to Google Maps with the address still typed in, Hayate realized that this apartment complex was actually within walking distance of her family's new house. Looking up, the brunette sat her laptop down, starting to prepare for a run.

* * *

The sound of a basketball constantly hitting pavement filled the court, accompanied by the sound of swift footsteps keeping time with said ball. The human racecar known as Fate Testarossa was a blur, running and dribbling at such high speeds that would make it impossible for any normal person to even get close to her. Luckily, Nanoha Takamachi's athletic ability was a far cry from normal, just like a certain whirlwind of a blonde. Even so, with all the time that they had spent playing one-on-one so far, both of them were thoroughly exhausted. When it came to speed and skill, they were equally matched, so in the end, it all came down to one factor: stamina.

After running as fast as she could to catch up with her, Nanoha blocked Fate's shot at the basket, stealing the ball before making her way back to her basket. However, just before she could make the shot, Fate returned the favor, blocking and stealing the ball and ducking under Nanoha's arms to run to her own basket. She could sense Nanoha catching up with her once more, and so she took aim, proceeding to shoot the ball from her spot in the middle of the court.

This was it; after they had agreed several minutes ago that the next point would be the last, it all came down to this shot. Fate was far too exhausted to go after the ball, as she had just run out of stamina right after she took the shot. It seemed like Nanoha had as well, since she had stopped beside her roommate to watch the ball soar through the air in a perfect arc towards the basket.

The next part seemed to happen in slow motion, with both Fate and Nanoha watching in awe as the ball moved at the perfect arc. Slowly, slowly, slowly, the ball seemed to fly painfully slowly, before finally reaching its destination: the backboard.

However, after bouncing off of the backboard, the ball didn't just go into the basket like Fate had planned, instead opting to bounce onto the rim, its spin causing it to roll around the rim three times before finally…

The ball tipped into the basket, scoring Fate the final point of the game and winning her the forty-five minute long match. After a few seconds of watching in shocked silence, both Fate and Nanoha fell to the ground, each of them on the verge of passing out from exhaustion. After a shared look, the both of them burst out into wild laughter, their sides hurting from its intensity as they lay there, looking up at the sky, then back to each other with wide smiles on their faces.

"Looks like you won again," Nanoha said, raising her hand, which trembled with exhaustion, to brush some stray auburn locks out of her face as she looked back up at the sky with a mock-pout.

"Yeah, but that was an incredibly close match," Fate replied, her crimson eyes looking at her roommate with a sparkle that only a game of basketball could bring out of her. "Nanoha… thank you."

"For what?" the girl in question queried in reply, looking over at her roommate with an inquisitive look as the blonde's soft gaze turned up to the sky.

"For being there for me," Fate replied, a sad smile forming on her lips as she began recalling everything that happened the previous summer, her crimson eyes losing their shine for a moment before regaining it once more. "After Lindy disowned me for you-know-what, you let me stay with you, and you didn't even care about my… preferences."

"You're my best friend, Fate," the brunette said softly, looking at her friend with a gentle smile as her azure eyes glimmered with compassion. "There's no way I could hate you over something as insignificant as that."

"Yeah, you're right," the blonde replied, giving one of her rare genuine smiles.

The next twenty minutes were spent in a comfortable silence, both of them just laying there in the grass with smiles on their faces as they drifted closer and closer to sleep. It was only right as she was about to fall asleep that Fate remembered something critical, something she had completely forgotten about up until that moment.

"Ah, that's right, I was going to meet up with someone," Fate whispered groggily, getting up as she slowly recovered from her almost-sleep. "Wait a second! That's right, I was going to meet up with that reviewer!"

By this point, Fate's yelling had woken up her auburn-haired roommate, who had actually been asleep, and who then slowly got up to watch Fate begin to run back to their apartment. A gentle smile crossing her features, Nanoha could only think of one thing to say, even though she knew that the blonde wouldn't be able to hear it.

"I'm glad," she said softly, her wistful tone betraying the smile she wore. "That you can finally move on."

* * *

The streets of San Diego were wonderful on a summer day, Hayate decided as she walked through them with a wide smile on her face. She couldn't be happier; here she was, about to meet up with her recently-made online friend in real life, and she didn't even have to take a car! Maybe they could meet up again after this one time, maybe they would become fast friends, maybe they would even…

_No, no, no,_ Hayate thought, shaking her head vigorously as she walked onward towards her destination with a dusting of pink on her cheeks. _I haven't even known her for more than a day, and I don't even know what she looks like— wait a second, have I even been talking to a girl?_

At the realization that she literally knew next to _nothing_ about her online friend, not even said friend's _gender_, Hayate stopped dead in her tracks, shock written all over her face as her sapphire eyes widened considerably. After a few seconds of standing there, the brunette reasoned that she could get to know this author by meeting up with him or her, and then maybe she wouldn't have to feel so bad for thinking the way she did.

With those thoughts in mind, Hayate smiled, looking around before breaking out into a run towards her destination— which she promptly forgot the location of right after she started running. And, when she reached into her pocket to look for the paper she wrote the address down on earlier, she grasped nothing but pocket lint, causing her to remember that she left the piece of paper on the table in her new house.

"_You've got to be kidding me,"_ the brunette said in Japanese as she continued walking aimlessly, silently hoping against hope that she would somehow stumble across the place she was looking for. However, after nearly an hour of searching around and finding absolutely nothing even _close_ to an apartment complex, she began to lose hope, closing her eyes as she walked down the sidewalk.

Things continued like this for another ten minutes or so, before Hayate just couldn't walk anymore. She opened her sapphire eyes for the first time in what seemed like hours, finding a bench in the shade not too far away after her eyes readjusted to the afternoon light. She walked over to it, sitting down and relaxing a bit when—

"Hey, look out!" someone shouted at her in English, making her eyes snap open wide with shock as she turned towards where she heard the shout—

Only to be met with a basketball to the face.

* * *

After at least thirty minutes of waiting, Fate had all but given up on meeting her reviewer. The blonde figured that she had either gotten lost or stood her up, though she doubted the latter of which; she had seemed so nice over their conversation, so it just didn't seem likely.

_Swish_

Another successful shot from Fate Testarossa, which meant another trip to the other side of the court to retrieve the ball.

"I would go look for her, but I don't know what she looks like," Fate thought, burgundy eyes showing her contemplation as she absentmindedly shot basketballs at the goal by the fence. "Maybe I should PM her, but then again, I don't even know if she has a phone that can get email…"

After retrieving the ball and walking to the free throw line, Fate prepared to make another shot, still deep in thought as her muscles tensed out of habit. When she finally shot the ball, she somehow forgot that she was now shooting from the free throw line, not three fourths of the way backwards down the court. Thus, she drastically overshot the ball, making it sail straight over the fence behind the basket and fall right towards a person sitting on a bench on the other side.

"Hey, look out!" Fate shouted as she ran towards the soon-to-be victim in a hopeless attempt to stop the incoming tragedy. Unfortunately, the blonde didn't make it in time, only reaching the fence by the time the ball hit its accidental target with a sickening _smack_.

Without any regard for her own safety, Fate climbed the basket like a monkey and jumped to the top of the tall, black fence, grabbing the railing before hoisting herself over to the other side. Her feet stung slightly from the impact, but she paid little heed to the pain, instead choosing to focus on helping the girl in front of her, who had apparently been knocked unconscious by the basketball. What's worse, the girl's nose was bleeding, making Fate shiver with fear; the blonde had been afraid of blood for as long as she could remember, and the nosebleed of this girl only made her want to throw up.

Looking away before she really did lose it, she quickly fished out her phone from her left pocket with her jittery hands, unlocking it and tapping on her phone app. Going into her contacts, she tapped on Nanoha's number, calling her in hopes of not having to deal with the blood. The brunette wasn't squeamish around blood like Fate, and she had the medical skills of a real doctor, despite her college studies being mostly about—

"Hey, what's up, Fate?" a sweet voice said from the other line, startling the blonde out of her wandering thoughts.

Almost immediately after she finished talking, Nanoha heard a string of incoherent words on the other end of the line, Fate speaking too fast for anyone to understand. "Slow down, girl," the brunette said soothingly, making the blonde sigh before starting to explain.

* * *

It was only after Nanoha had arrived, helped Fate carry her to their apartment, and treated her wounds, that the blonde realized that this poor girl whom she had hit with a basketball actually looked familiar. And of course, her last memories of this girl were far from happy, making her dread the moment when her unwitting victim woke up.

_No way,_ Fate thought, her burgundy eyes trained on the unconscious girl before her as she watched the slow, rhythmic rise and fall of her chest. The blonde felt so _dirty_, watching her like that, without the poor girl even knowing that she was there. After what happened, the blonde knew that she didn't even have the right to be _near_ her, let alone watch her like that. But she couldn't stop.

"You look like you're killing yourself on the inside," Nanoha said, her auburn locks swaying in the gentle breeze created by the fan next to the door as she walked into the room. "It was just an accident, Fate, it's not like she's going to hate you just because you accidentally hit her with a ball. Just explain the situation to her and I'm sure she'll—"

"That's not it, Nanoha," the blonde said, shaking her head slowly as her crimson eyes shimmered with unshed tears. "This girl…" Fate shook her head, blinking back the tears that had almost escaped her. "You remember how I used to go to Japan every year for the summer up until this year, right?"

Nanoha nodded, gently urging her friend to continue, her cobalt eyes trying their best to convey the message that it was fine to do so. The blonde had been mostly tight-lipped about what happened in the last summer trip, but she knew it must have hurt her deeply, and it looked like she was finally going to talk about it.

"Well, last summer, I met a girl while over there," Fate said, finding it surprisingly easy to talk about compared to how she thought it would be. "But I already told you that, didn't I? Well, I don't know how she got here, but this is her…

"This is her, Nanoha," Fate said, a smile of self-loathing marring her features. "This is Hayate Yagami."

* * *

**Author's Note**

**Yeah, I really didn't feel like revealing any more, so I decided to leave it at that and release this chapter immediately! Sorry to those of you who saw any mistakes; I release these things about an hour after I finish them, so I don't usually to a very thorough quality check. Thus, just like last chapter, you may have seen some careless mistakes (seriously, at the end of the last chapter, one of my typos made Fate say that she was an 'idiom' instead of an 'idiot'), and I apologize for that.**

**Anyway, here's a disclaimer to stop me from getting in trouble with copyright law! I don't own the Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha series or anything/anyone I use from it!**

**Ciao!**


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